Is busyness and addiction?

Is ‘I am busy’your typical answer to the question ‘How are you’?

Our society puts a high value on being busy. If you work in an environment where you constantly need to achieve something under challenging circumstances, there is a chance that your chronically stressed out brain can become dependent on dopamine. By activating the dopamine reward centre in the brain that feeds us feel-good endorphins, stress can temporarily boost performance, explaining why some of us appear to get so much done under pressure.

If you are addicted to being busy and under pressure you might find the following statements familiar:

De-stress your relationships

Whether you’re a Valentine’s Day lover or hater, would you agree that relationships could be equally joyful and challenging?These challenges can bring about feelings of anxiety and stress that you can befriend and use for your advantages.

Befriending stress

Aren’t we all busy?Is being stressed became almost a norm in our society?So much of our lives seems to pass by in a blur, running from appointment to appointment, chasing our tails. And we’re reacting like crazy to external events over which we have no control.

Stress is something that we all face on a daily basis, we usually forget how important it is to chill and enjoy our times. This month we will explore the topic of befriending stress, increasing resilience, so instead of getting burnt out you can transform it to improve your focus and productivity.

My story with exam stress

I started playing the piano at age 5, and for the next 13 years, I found myself in many situations – such as playing at concerts or competitions – where I had to perform well.

In 2004, I found myself in a highly stressful situation and ended up suffering from insomnia for more than a year. It had a massive negative effect on my studies and exams – and this was the year that I completed two degrees: An MSc in Biology and a BA in Events Management.

I had two final exams to prepare for. My first exam was Biology, and I had plenty of time to prepare. But I had only 10 days for my second exam, meaning that I also had to rest after studying biology for a month and find enough space in my brain for new information.

Are you juggling too much?

Stress seems to be in the air at the moment. You can almost physically feel it as you walk down the street and see people rushing around trying to rush the kids to school, get themselves to work on time, change gear after the summer holidays and deal with the temperamental British weather.I’ve had a pretty crazy week myself, working more than 11 hours a day, juggling working at the office, preparing for client sessions, pulling presentations together and confronting all the admin that piles up without my noticing. Oh, and not to forget coordinating a website project for the British Autogenic Society, buying a present for my best friend’s birthday and trying to fit in eating and sleeping somehow!

I know I’m not alone – you might be reading this and think, ‘lightweight, that’s nothing compared to my 14 hour day, five children to clothe and feed, etc’ – but rather than turn this into a game of stress one-upmanship I want to think a bit about how we can deal with this. Because the reality is that the stresses of life aren’t going to disappear. Short of winning the lottery we’re still going to have to make a living, and the added pressures of family and social life, sometimes combined with physical illness, can just seem like too much.